I'm the Hen Ferchetan. This is my take on the world through the eyes of Wales. While mostly about Welsh politics (that most famous of dour topics!) I try to scatter some humour around, but I doubt anyone but me will find it funny! Have a read, and if it bores you then feel free to never come back!

Friday 26 September 2008

Media Mess

So ITV Wales is, for all extent and purposes, no longer. The industry regulator, Ofcom, has announced that Welsh news coverage on the third channel will be reduced from 320 minutes a week to 240. Even worse is that non-news will fall from 240 minutes to just 90.

What this means in practical terms is that the evening Wales Today will be the only Welsh news on the channel, with the mid morning and weekend lunchtime programmes dropped. As for non-news ITV Wales' current flagship programmes like Wales This Week, Sharp End, Soccer Sunday, Fishlock's Wild Tracks and The Ferret will find themselves fighting for scraps.

ITV Wales' head of Drama was scathing in judging the proposals:
“This is the kind of vested interests and cultural arrogance we have seen over the years where they have deliberately undermined our attempts to represent Wales on the UK network."
It's already clear that coverage of devolved politics in Wales is abysmal. With the UK written media practically ignoring the Assembly all together and the Western Mail's circulation flatlining under 40,000 and seemingly concerned only in copying and pasting Adam Price's blog posts the only place the Welsh public learn about devolved politics is through their TV set. With the BBC being attacked for ignoring devolved politics and ITV now cutting their coverage to the bones things look quite bleak.

The barrenness of the media coverage was reflected by the recent poll which showed that over 30% of Welsh people interested in politics got their fix from the internet. Credit where it's due, the BBC Wales news website churn out plenty of stories, but, being the BBC, they are lifeless and simply contain quotes from government and opposition politics. The same pattern is employed by the Western Mail and her sister paper. What this means is that there is no-one left to actually investigate Welsh politics, to dig deep into her secrets and complexities. If Peter Hain had just been the Welsh Secretary and not the Secretary for Works and Pensions, would he have escaped disgrace? Because I can guarantee you that neither BBC Wales, ITV Wales nor the Western Mail would have any ability or interest to expose him.

With the possible end of Wales this Week and the Sharp End, and a further cut in Welsh news, what we are left with in this country are a few reporters. What we need is investigative reporters, but don't hold your breath.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Death by a thousand cuts - and no one seems to be even raising a whimper.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Hen Ferchetan said...

Anon (Hogia Gwynedd). I want to link to a video, I'll do so. I linked to your full of lies and libel, it had humour. Numbers 2 and 3 aren't funny so I haven't bothered to link to them.

Anonymous said...

Hen ferchetan - You are typical of the Welsh blogosphere - loyal Plaidies, scared stiff of criticism and lacking any courage.

I hope you delete this comment too as then you will have complete control over this paranoid little world you inhabit!

Hen Ferchetan said...

I put my explenation for deleting your "comment" up there. Has nothing to do with the post and trying to flog your own stuff.

I've posted a link to your video already, the fact that you didn't even realise that shows that you're just spamming blogs with adverts.

If I wanted I could have just deleted your comment permanently and left no record, but I gave you a reason instead.

You want to make a comment? Go ahead, but I've no interest in off-topic adverts.

If you want to link to your Bunker II and II videos (as I said, I wouldn't bother, they're not funny as the first was) then do it in the post where I actually discussed and linked the first video, not in the most recent post which has no link to your video.

The Half-Blood Welshman said...

It's worse if you have an interest in Welsh politics but happen to live 10 miles the other side of the border. It's one reason why my blog contains steadily less Welsh stuff.

Cibwr said...

Be careful what you wish for, there may be a revival in the Welsh Mirror... I don't mean the palid version that there is now, but the more full blooded version that existed up to the second Assembly election. Its only reason for existing was to bash Plaid and support Labour, having done its job it was quickly consigned to history. Wales lacks the range of print media that Scotland has and it looks like TV is going the same way.

Hen Ferchetan said...

Ah the good old Welsh Mirror and their "unbiased" Political "Journalist" Paul Starling!